The proliferation of unstructured data seen this year is poised to accelerate in 2019 and BDEX stands ready with an infrastructure built to power human connectivity.

One of the recurring themes to emerge in 2018 was data overload. The ability of humans to generate data continued to outstrip our ability to understand and act on it. In 2019, there will be the additional challenge of structuring the growing torrent of data from so many disparate sources.

Amid all the excitement about the convergence of Big Data, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT), however, some still ask if all the data is going to make us any smarter? Is it really going to make marketing more efficient, more precise, more effective?

At BDEX we are confident it will because we have spent the last five years building a proprietary data infrastructure to power human connectivity. Today, our platform tracks more 800 million connections between email and mobile IDs and cookie and email IDs to make sure we can connect our customers to the right people on the right device at the right time. We have curated more than 5,500 data classifications that enable our analysts to produce targeted customer lists with unprecedented accuracy, granularity, and speed.

We see the value of these investments being validated every day in the marketplace. As 2018 draws to a close, it seems like a good time to review how and why we have built our infrastructure and what marketers can do with it. So here is a curated list of some of the articles we published on our blog last year.

We look forward to publishing new articles next year and will strive to make them as accurate, timely and actionable as our data. Stay tuned.

Data-driven solutions taking shape on the shop floor will match gender, age, ethnicity, and shopping habits to what’s on offer now

The days of aimlessly wandering the store in search of a deal or a “you” item look to soon be over. Brick and mortar retailers are embracing the latest in data technology to recognize and serve visitors like never before. Device matching, real-time targeting, and even budding facial recognition tech are eroding the notion of searching for a new customer. It’s now possible to know someone who wants to buy the moment they walk in.

How real-time data provides the most actionable marketing possible

Speed of transmission and lack of detail were two old enemies of in-store marketing. They’re becoming obsolete in an era where almost the instant a customer expresses an interest in/buys a product, a retailer can be notified and be able to target that individual with relevant content.

How is this possible? Smart uses of data like device matching and geofencing are two methods which create a purchasing portrait of prospects across every major demographic. Device matching with BDEX allows retailers to market to consumers across multiple devices and channels as the data link a consumer’s search/purchase activity via mobile, email, social media, and other avenues.

Geofencing creates a data map of all the physical retail locations a potential prospect has visited. This is useful because it shows they’re actively and physically searching for an item or service. Internet browsing data is valuable, but geofencing further isolates a consumer who’s actually visited a certain type of business. This is one of the reasons why BDEX data can drive and support in-store marketing so effectively.

We repeatedly test our data to authenticate its accuracy and currency to sidestep the pitfalls of outdated or “too broad” data – and we enable our customers to buy only the data they need. Our tailored approach allows retailers to create a dynamically-informed marketing effort that never sleeps. Actionable prospects can be marketed to in their home, via their mobile device on the go, and even when they visit your location.

The latest in-store marketing is a customer service gold mine

When a prospect has entered a store, data has the potential to really close a sale. Modern digital signage can be updated on a single screen or storewide to display offers relevant to specific viewers. Imagine a scenario where a prospect checks in and you know exactly whom is watching your in-store screen – and precisely what they’d been browsing only an hour before.

Interactive digital displays provide the same tactile satisfaction as customer cell phones or other touchscreen devices. In fact, this in-store marketing sector is set to exceed $20 billion by 2024. Nevertheless, all the digital signs in the world are just flashy eye-catchers without being powered by actionable data.

Who’s marketing in-store and why it’s working

Ralph Lauren has integrated in-store digital into their changing rooms to powerful effect. Embracing this kind of innovation has provided real-time data on customer purchases (or lack thereof) and tripled their sales forecast while increasing customer engagement by 90%. McDonald’s is realizing the potential of onsite touch screens as an alternative to face to face orders. They’re also reviewing cell phone ordering, along with other chains that have successfully implemented the technology.

The supermarket sector (including the Walmart brand) understands how data is vital to staying competitive. They’re using it to engage in-store customers in a personal manner. The retail giant has even registered multiple patents to take their data-driven marketing into the future, an effort that sees them calculating 2.5 petabytes of data … every hour!

Clearly, the potential for data-driven in-store marketing is vast. Customers engaged by relevant, real-time data will interact further with your brand, providing even more data to enrich your understanding of that customer’s needs and build a lasting relationship. Current and future technology will allow stores and customers to connect at every point on the retail journey – from first thought to final checkout.

BDEX is the first-ever Data Exchange Platform (DXP). The BDEX DXP and DAAS platforms enable companies to acquire impartial, quality-scored third-party data reaching the right people at the right time. You can call at (917) 410 – 6616 or email us at info@bdex.com

6 ways artificial intelligence could impact target marketing

Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the most talked about and promising technologies today. While many individuals think it still exists mainly in the realm of science fiction, AI is actually very much part of the real world now. It’s becoming increasingly more sophisticated and the number of industries using the technology is growing, including professionals in marketing and advertising.

First, what is artificial intelligence exactly?

Artificial intelligence is widely misunderstood, mainly due to Hollywood movies featuring robots that try to take over the world. Think The Terminator or HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey. In today’s actual, practical applications, AI technology makes it possible for machines to “learn” discrete tasks much as humans do. Think with Google describes it this way: “Artificial intelligence is the study of how to make machines intelligent or capable of solving problems as well as people … with machine learning, we teach computers to learn without having to program them with a rigid set of rules.”

Here are 6 promising ways AI is (or will be) used in marketing and advertising:

1. AI can be used to create customizable ad campaigns

AI is a tool that will allow marketers to tailor ad campaigns based on consumer intent at the moment. “We’re getting closer to the point where campaigns and customer interactions can be made more relevant end-to-end – from planning to creative messaging to media targeting to the retail experience,” according to Think with Google.

BDEX already has the technology to target customer behavior based on real-time data such as online searches, geofencing, and in-store POS purchases. When this data interface with full-developed AI, what you do with it will become automatic.

2. AI can allow you to set up custom ad impressions

AI is already present in marketing tools that use custom algorithms to increase the number and relevancy of impressions that are served to potential consumers online. By using historical data and online search data, programs learn to predict consumer behavior and then automatically show ads that are most relevant to prospects at that time.

3. AI can help you create programmatic advertising

Programmatic advertising is a promising new technology that has a lot of marketers excited. This tool allows you to buy digital advertising space automatically after AI analyzes data to determine which ads to buy. Demand-side platform (DSP) and supply-side platform (SSP) work together to match the right ad to the right audience. AI can analyze online behavior to create an instantaneous campaign that is optimized to a specific user.

4. AI can create responsive search ads

Along with customizable and programmed ads, AI can also be used to create something called responsive search ads. It’s a technology being employed by the Google Marketing Platform. You submit 3-15 different ad layouts, along with meta-descriptions for each ad. Google will combine their data with your ad parameters and use it to determine which ad should be displayed for a particular user. The ad that’s displayed is different for everyone, as it’s based on his or her search history, habits, and preferences.

5. AI can help create and curate ad campaign content

Although it’s hard to imagine a computer coming up with creative ideas, it has been done successfully. “Toyota recently started to create AI-generated ads …They were able to generate a system that created realistic-sounding lines that they were able to implement in their marketing,” reportsTarget Marketing Magazine.

AI can also be used to create visual content, such as videos, commercials, and in-store promotions displayed on digital screens.

6. AI can help you test different ad campaigns

AI is capable of automating complex tasks like A/B testing to gauge the effectiveness of various marketing campaigns. It can get feedback in many different ways and formats and then determine the success or failure of a specific campaign based on a vast array of metrics. This same concept can also be applied to data that is supplied by BDEX. Our customers often want to be able to adjust their marketing campaigns based on different data signals; let’s say you choose four different data signals and run unique campaigns based on each segment. You can monitor the performance of each campaign and then use algorithms to decide which one is working the best for each data source. The essential promise of AI is that it can iteratively learn which data signals are the best predictors of behavior and the success of a campaign – at a much higher volume and a much faster pace, automatically.

Artificial intelligence is technology that is changing the way marketers and advertisers interact with and reach potential consumers. Some of it is future tech, while much of it is being used now.

BDEX also offers new and innovative ways to reach your target audience through the use of comprehensive, real-time data. Contact us to today to learn more.

And how it saves companies time and money while supercharging marketing campaigns

These days, you can’t throw a rock without hitting data (or at least somebody talking about data). And data fusion has become a common buzzword in business, and especially with marketing.

While it’s true that modern data collection and analysis are essential when it comes to targeting prospects, there are a number of things that have to be considered. First of all, the data has to be relevant and actionable in order to be useful. On top of that, it has to be easy to obtain, understand, and utilize. Many data companies fall well short in all of these regards, which is one of the reasons many businesses turn to BDEX.

Out with the old

The traditional way for companies to get data and leverage it in-house is to buy it from several different places and then have data scientists aggregate it. This involves investing in a platform and paying database administrators and analysts to store, manage, and make sense of it. Once the data goes into one of these platforms, companies have to verify and cross-reference it across consumer identities and disparate sources. Not only does this involve a significant amount of work and expense, this inefficient method doesn’t always produce the best results – or leverage the best sources.

In with the new

With our Data Exchange Platform (DXP), we aggregate the best data sources while saving our customers a lot of time and money. The main reason the DXP is so powerful is due to the uniform taxonomy we’ve built. When data comes into the platform from dozens or even hundreds of different sources, immediately it gets sorted, verified, and otherwise aggregated. Plus, because of our device graph – which is one of the most extensive in the U.S. – we can take data from any source and unify devices at the consumer level. All of this allows users to search all of the sources across more than 5,000 categories with a single query.

Always authentic data

Another unique aspect of the DXP is that we can authenticate the data. In many instances, the same data comes from a variety of different sources, which can result in incomplete or wrong examples of information. For example, one source may say that someone is male, while another says they’re female. But we have the ability to fully authenticate the quality of the data by looking at numerous sources that say the same things – separating them from those that don’t.

Access to millions of consumers and billions of their emails and devices

Our DXP is essentially a one-stop shop for all data needs. We give companies access to 290 million consumer identities and around 1.3 billion email addresses. We also have more than a billion device IDs. This means that even if someone regularly uses more than one device, through cross-device matching, we will know which ones are linked to a specific person.

Get the most out of your 2019 marketing budget

Marketing often takes up a large chunk of company budgets and it’s often inefficient – but actionable, highly-detailed data that targets prospects whom are currently looking to purchase your product or service get the most out of this spend. If you’re putting together your marketing plan for 2019, let BDEX help you find the individuals who are ready to buy. Get in touch with us now to learn about everything we offer.

We make a point to know our customers so they can know theirs better

Although data analysis for marketing purposes is relatively new, there are now numerous companies that sell data and associated services to businesses. The problem, though, is that while plentiful, often much of this data is worthless – because it’s old, unreliable, or just not relevant.

Most companies don’t work closely enough with their customers to find the right data, and once they make a sale, they often don’t care whether or not it was useful. However, this is where BDEX stands out from the pack.

The BDEX difference

At BDEX, we take a consultative approach with our customers. This involves getting to know them in order to get a clear understanding of who their customers are and who they’re trying to reach. But we also dig much deeper. To determine if someone is an ideal prospect for our clients, we look at behaviors and intents.

Are individuals in the process of looking for a business’s specific product or service? If so, how and when are they searching? It’s at that point that we look at the data signals that indicate certain behaviors.

When we identify the right data signals, we start building the proper filter for our customer. In addition to the exact signals, we also look at a specific geographic region. One of the best aspects of our process is that it’s almost completely turnkey. We make it extremely simple for our customers. And once the filter is built, we start sending them data that is very easy to read and utilize.

Comprehensive reports

Our team of data experts creates and distributes regular reports for our customers. These involve the agreed-upon signals and geographic region that show how many consumers can be reached per month, along with their costs. They can also get files daily, monthly, or weekly with the names, addresses, phone numbers, and emails of the people whom they want to market to.

Real-time behaviors, not predictive analytics

One company we work with does a lot related to the furniture industry. After determining who their customers are and who they want to target, we thought about when people decide to buy furniture. Often this is related to certain life events, such as when someone has a baby or when they move. We began to identify the signals that show that someone may need new furniture. And, unlike most data companies that use predictive analytics, we look at real-time behaviors.

For example, if someone visits a real estate website, we will know it almost as soon as it happens. This could be an indication that now is a good time to reach this person, as new furniture often accompanies a home purchase. And when it’s coupled with other real-time signals – such as actively shopping at a competing furniture store – the data becomes incredibly precise and powerful.

In addition to businesses that sell furniture, this information is also relevant to financing companies. Before someone moves – or even before they buy a new home – they can be presented with financing offers, giving them an incentive to go to a specific furniture store when they’re ready to buy.

Quick adaptations

We understand that our success is based on the success of our customers, which is why we don’t just supply data and walk away. We always make a point to follow up to talk about their marketing results. If things need to be tweaked, we will make the necessary changes or adjustments. In most cases, customers want to expand what they’re doing with us because they see how effective it is.

If your company’s marketing efforts are too broad, BDEX can help you narrow them so you are just targeting customers who are ready to buy right now. Contact us to get started.

5 things that set BDEX apart

Customer data drives so much of our commerce. The ability to collect and track information on buying habits, online search activity, and past purchases, as well as personal and demographic data such as location, age, gender, occupation, and marital status, means we know more about consumer activity – and consumers themselves – than ever before.

And while there are many data companies and various sources out there, BDEX’s platforms and services work in a different, better way. Here are four things that set us apart:

1. Real-time targeting

BDEX offers market-driven information with consumer scoring, customer purchasing information, and real-time data based on recent Internet search activity and purchases for everything from airline tickets and cars to apparel and furniture. We also have to ability to collect data via Point-of-Service (POS) systems from brick-and-mortar stores, as well as geofencing technology, a location-based service that uses GPS, RFID (radio frequency identifiers), Wi-Fi, and cellular data to track stores that consumers have visited.

This information is gathered the moment a prospect starts shopping, allowing you to target individuals who are already in the market for your product or service. You can create personalized messages or even develop new offers that speak directly to customers’ needs. No matter your business or industry, we have data that can help you reach your target audience at the very moment they are looking.

2. Accurate, specific, and processed data

One problem within our industry is the overuse of data. Many companies collect or buy the same data from the same sources, so information simply gets passed around. It often comes in a variety of files and formats that must be aggregated and categorized, which can lead to errors or significant manual work to find what you’re looking for. BDEX avoids this time-consuming, error-prone method by immediately sorting and identifying the data points that come into our exchange platform to ensure its accuracy and relevance to our clients.

3. Data downloading, uploading, selling, and management made easy

Most data exchange companies that are interested in purchasing your data require you to organize and format this information in a certain way, within a custom set of distinct parameters. BDEX simplifies the process of you monetizing your valuable data with our Platform as a Service (PaaS). Our system eases managing and formatting your data, and can even transmit it to buyers according to their required specifications.

In addition, our Data Download Module allows you to select and download the data you buy from BDEX straight from us – and only in the format in which you need it – rather than deal with an email file or a data set that is non-specific. You can reuse data that was saved from a previous campaign or simply use the latest leads for an entirely new effort. Files are available in CSV or XML formats, which are easy to open and use on almost any device.

4. Cross-device matching

Our data gives you the ability to market to consumers via multiple devices and channels, including email, social media, direct mail, and mobile. We utilize information from more than 75 vetted partners and 400 million mobile-to-email ID connections – matching up different sources with the same consumers on different devices – to help you find and target prospects across different platforms.

5. The BDEX Data Exchange Platform

BDEX manages a complex data exchange that ingests real-time info from disparate sources and integrates them – and it has access to unique data from our partners who contribute to the platform. This means our clients get unique, highly-targeted, and actionable marketing information that they wouldn’t otherwise have access to. The BDEX Data Exchange Platform features real-time data collected from over 700 million device ID connections and more than 900 billion data signals.

Call us at 917-410-6616 or send an email to info@bdex.com to start putting this information to work for your business.